Not Just Rocks: The Geology Quiz

Geologists study the processes and substances that form Earth. Most of those processes happen over millions of years, but this quiz only takes a few minutes! Find out how rock solid your knowledge of geology is.

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Question 1 of 30

The part of Earth that lies just beneath the crust is the …

tectonic plate

mantle

The mantle "flows" over an extremely long time, but it primarily consists of solid rock.

ionosphere

Question 2 of 30

Areas known as karst are characterized by extensive cave systems and are commonly associated with what type of rock?

limestone

Limestone is highly soluble in water compared to other forms of rock. Water erodes passages through limestone and creates the caves and other features common to karst topography.

sandstone

marble

Question 3 of 30

How old is Earth?

4.54 billion years

Earth formed approximately 4.54 billion years ago when a disk of debris gathered into a rocky sphere, a process known as accretion.

430 million years

80 trillion years

Question 4 of 30

Moraines are geologic features that can form ridges, rolling hills or wedge-shaped areas. What process causes them to form?

the collision of two tectonic plates

the compression of sedimentary layers

glaciers depositing debris as they advance, melt and retreat

Glaciers scoop rocky debris from the ground and slowly carry it forward, eventually depositing the debris when the glacial ice melts.

Question 5 of 30

What U.S. state was formed by a hotspot of magma that was fed to the crust from the mantle?

Alaska

California

Hawaii

The magma was cooled by ocean water, forming the Hawaiian islands.

Question 6 of 30

What sedimentary rock is formed when plant matter is buried and compressed over millions of years?

coal

Coal has been used as a fuel for thousands of years.

sandstone

turbidite

Question 7 of 30

What is the Ring of Fire?

a circular area of intense heat that forms around the cones of volcanoes

an area around the perimeter of the Pacific Ocean characterized by frequent, intense seismic activity

The series of active tectonic plate boundaries surrounding the Pacific Ocean accounts for the majority of the world's earthquakes and volcanoes.

a region in Siberia where surface coal deposits are constantly burning

Question 8 of 30

How do geologists think Earth's moon formed?

It formed as the result of a massive impact on Earth.

While it's not the only theory, geologists think a planet the size of Mars may have impacted Earth and created the moon not long after Earth formed.

It formed from several asteroids millions of years after Earth formed.

It was one of Saturn's moons, but a collision knocked it out of orbit, and it was later captured by Earth's gravity.

Question 9 of 30

What effect has erosion had on Niagara Falls?

It has caused the waterfall to retreat more than 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) in the last 10,000 years.

Niagara Falls has "moved" several kilometers over thousands of years.

It has forced the river into a narrower passage by carving into the bedrock.

It has increased the velocity of the water by carving a deeper slope.

Question 10 of 30

How does beach sand form?

petrification of topsoil

compression of volcanic rocks

ocean waves grind rocks into tiny grains over an extremely long time

Over millions of years, ocean waves grind rocks down to grains of sand. The color of a beach depends on the mineral composition of the nearby rocks that formed it.

Question 11 of 30

What causes geysers?

an underground river causes pressure to back up in a constrained chamber

groundwater heated by magma becomes superheated and flashes into steam

Geysers require specific "plumbing" (usually a lower chamber with a constrained opening at the surface) for the water to become superheated.

a shifting fault pressurizes an underground chamber of water

Question 12 of 30

How deep is the deepest man-made borehole on Earth?

12,262 meters (40,230 feet)

Russia's Kola Superdeep Borehole reached a depth of 12,262 meters in 1989 and has never been surpassed.

34,650 meters

7,892 meters

Question 13 of 30

Earth's continents were once joined as a single massive supercontinent. What do geologists call it?

Greater Eurasia

Pangaea

The Greek name Pangaea can be roughly translated to English as "whole Earth."

C-1

Question 14 of 30

As you go deeper into Earth, the temperature …

gets hotter

Earth gets hotter the deeper you go. The temperature of the mantle ranges from 1832 F (1000 C) to 6692 F (3700 C).

gets cooler

varies from one layer to the next

Question 15 of 30

The subduction of the Pacific Plate beneath the Mariana Plate caused the formation of what unique geologic feature?

Japan

the Mariana Trench

The deepest part of the Mariana Trench is nearly seven miles below the surface of the ocean.

the Grand Canyon

Question 16 of 30

How have seismologists mapped Earth's interior?

They infer the contents of the interior based on computer analysis of satellite images.

They use extremely strong radar waves.

They can see different types of waves from earthquakes propagate through areas of different density within the interior.

Earthquakes waves move differently through different materials, which is how seismologists know the outer core is liquid and the mantle slowly shifts via convection.

Question 17 of 30

What type of rock is formed by extreme pressure and heat over a long time?

igneous

metamorphic

Examples of metamorphic rock include gneiss and marble.

sedimentary

Question 18 of 30

One type of rock can only be formed from the sudden shock and heat of a meteorite impact. What is it called?

impactite

Impactites are considered metamorphic even though they don't form over the millions of years required for most metamorphic rocks.

schist

dolomite

Question 19 of 30

Which of these is NOT a mineral?

Pyrex

Asbestos and lead are both naturally occurring minerals. Pyrex is a brand name for heat-resistant glass.

asbestos

lead

Question 20 of 30

Which of these is a type of lava flow?

pahoehoe

Pahoehoe is pronounced "pah-hoey-hoey" and is a term of Hawaiian origin.

phyllite

shale

Question 21 of 30

Uncemented sediments can form islands along ocean shorelines. What are these islands called?

atolls

barrier islands

Barrier islands are often made of sand dunes and other loose material, and they can shift, change or disappear during storms. They help protect shorelines from erosion and storm surges.

sea mounts

Question 22 of 30

Soil that does not match the age or composition of the underlying bedrock it sits upon is called …

residual soil

transported soil

Transported soil is moved by erosion and gravity. Its origin can often be found uphill, but wind can carry transported soil hundreds or thousands of miles, even across oceans.

compound soil

Question 23 of 30

Which mineral precipitates from oceans and forms rock salt?

halite

Halite forms when salty bodies of water dry up, leaving salt deposits that can be hundreds of meters thick.

quartz

olivine

Question 24 of 30

What shape is Earth?

an oblate spheroid

An oblate spheroid is a squashed sphere — Earth is slightly flatter at the poles and bulges at the Equator.

a perfect sphere

pear-shaped

Question 25 of 30

What is post-glacial rebound?

when the crust gradually lifts back up after being depressed by the incredible weight of glacial ice

During the last glacial period, glacial ice in Europe and North America was up to 3 kilometers (1.9 miles) thick. The incredible weight pushed down on the crust, and in some areas the crust is still springing back into shape.

when a glacier melts but quickly reforms

when the movement of a glacier is redirected by a pre-existing rock feature.

Question 26 of 30

What causes Earth's magnetic field?

radiation from the sun

the alignment of magnetic metals in the crust

the movement of liquid iron in the outer core

The process that creates the magnetic field is complex, but it is caused by molten iron in the outer core moving due to heat convection from the hotter, solid inner core.

Question 27 of 30

A widely accepted theory suggests that mass extinctions have been caused by asteroid impacts. What evidence is there to support this theory?

remnants of massive impact craters on the surface

The remnants of enormous impact craters, some of them 100 miles (161 kilometers) or more in diameter, can be found worldwide, with some of the largest in South Africa, Canada and Mexico.

mountains which are actually intact asteroids sitting on the surface

cave paintings depicting massive spheres of fire falling from the sky

Question 28 of 30

What is notable about the mineral called cinnabar?

It tastes like cinnamon.

It's the deadliest mineral on Earth.

Cinnabar is mercury sulfide, an incredibly toxic chemical. You should never handle cinnabar, much less taste it.

It burns so slowly that a small chunk would sustain a flame for 15 years.

Question 29 of 30

What is happening to the crust at the Mid-Atlantic Ridge?

It's colliding and forming a new chain of mountains.

It's spreading at a rate of approximately 2.5 centimeters each year as tectonic plates move away from each other.

The crust is spreading out at the Mid-Atlantic Ridge because it's a divergent boundary between the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates as well as the South American and African plates.

It's relatively static.

Question 30 of 30

What happened to Lake Missoula 15,000 years ago?

It was cut off from its source, and it dried up.

Fissures in the lake bed caused it to slowly drain into the groundwater.

The collapse of an ice dam caused it to catastrophically flood the surrounding area.

It's believed that ice dam formation and collapse caused several massive floods during the last ice age, unleashing incredible energy and reshaping the surrounding area.